Soap dispenser



May 21, 1957 E. M. M NALLY 2,

SOAP DISPENSER Filed Sept. 27, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I I, z; v 7.5 f a I y g INVENTOR I h /fi .s

. Bvl'd mrdmm-hzqy k wan on, c092, @Au'mdfi ATTORNEY5 May 21, 1957 E. M. MCNALLY r 2,792,863

" SOAP DISPENSER Filed Sept. 27, 1954 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR 7 I zz 'rdzzwjwzg BY was, Q6; q/u'uae auras,

ATTORNEY5 1 ijnited States Patent F Voorhis-Tiebout Co., Incorporated, Red Hook, N. Y., r

a corporation of New York Application September 27, 1954, Serial No. 458,575 2 (Jlaims. (Cl. 146-61) This invention relates to apparatus for dispensing soap of the type employing a casing dimensioned to receive a bar or slab of soap and having a rotary cutter positioned in the casing for engagement with the lower end of the bar, by means of which the bar is shredded, the soap particles or granules thus produced being discharged through an opening in the bottom of the casing. In such apparatus, the soap bar is commonly p'r'essed downwardly against the cutter by spring pressure. Soap dispensers of this general type are disclosed and claimed in United States Letters Patent to Gordon Voorhis 2,011,128, granted August 13,1935, and 2,191,003, granted February 20, 11940,

As disclosed in these prior patents, the dispenser casing and/ or associated elements are formed to provide an inwardly projecting, V-shaped structure, so as to accommodate only bars of soap having a deep v-shaped groove in one face thereof, an arrangement whieh possesses a number of outstanding advantages. Thus the provision of the groove facilitates drying of the soap bar, which is important in order that the shredding operation may be effectively carried out to produce fine particles or'powd er, as pointed out in United States Letters Patent to Voorh'is 2,011,129, granted August 13, 1935, in which the soap bar is disclosed and claimed. Second, the arran ement prohibits the use in the dispenser of bars of soap which are not so specially formed with the v-s'haped groove,

and thusprevents the use of soap which is not adequately dehydrated, or which is otherwise unsuitable for the purpose.

The outstanding advantage, however, resides in the fact that the soap bar may be -guided in its downward movement by the cooperation of the v-shaped structure in the casing with the V-shaped groove iii-'thesoap bar, thus permitting greater tolerance in the outer dimension of the bar, and even allowing for the use in the dispenser of bars of distinctly different dimension, if desired.

I have found, however, thatth'e dispensers of the prior art do not invariably effect fceding'of the soap bar downwardly against the cutter with such precision that the last portion of the bar to be shredded is presented to the cutter in proper alignment. Feeding of the remnant of the bar at a slight angle to the cutter occasionally causes breaking of the last remaining water of soap into fragments, sotliat the entire bar is not efficiently shredded and powdered.

his the primary object of thein'stan't invention 'to avoid this defect by so forming the casing and/or associated elements that the soap bar will be guided accurately and precisely toward the cutter, whereby the last fragment of the bar may be utilized by efii'cient shreddin thereof. More specifically, it is an object of the invention to rovide, in aa soapdispenser of the character described having a rotary cutter supported in the dispenser casing on a generally horizontal axis, and having at one side of the casing a V-shaped projection engaging inia groove in the soap bar, guide means associated with the opposite side of the casing to guide the soap bar in a straight path downwardly against the cutter. Said guide means may include at least one substantially vertical rib projecting inwardly of the casing for reception in a correspondingly shaped groove in the soap bar. Therib or ribs and the I-shaped projection preferably project inwardly in a direction transverse of the a'ri'is of the rotary-cutter, it

2,792,863 Phtented May 21, 1957 being found that the failure to feed the bar correctly is due to the tendency of the soap bar to cant or rock in a vertical plane parallel to the cutter axis as the cutter is rotated, the direction of canting of the bar depending upon the direction of rotation of the cutter.

In the preferred form of the invention, two vertically extending guiding ribs located in spaced relation are employed, each rib being substantially rectangular in horizontal section; the soap bar is provided with correspond ing grooves of rectangular configuration, correspondingly spaced, and dimensioned to receive the ribs with a sliding fit.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a novel soap bar for use in dispensers of the type described.

Further objects and features of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a front elevation of a soap dispenser embodying the principles of the invention, a lower front cover section of the casing being removed to show the cutter;

Figure 2 is a vertical section taken substantially on the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a horizontal section on the line 3-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4 is an elevation showing the inside of the upper front cover section of the casing;

Figure 5 is an elevation of the inside of the rear section of the casing;

Figures 6 and 7 are transverse sectional views taken substantially on the lines 6-45 and 77, and

Figure 8 is a perspective view of a soap bar formed to provide the recesses hereinbefore described, and suitable for use in the illustrated dispenser.

in order to promote an understanding of the invention, reference is made hereinafter to the preferred embodiment of the invention illustrated in the drawings and specific language is used to describe the same. It will nevertheless be appreciated that no limitation of the scope of the invention is thereby intended, such further modification and alterations being contemplated as fall within the appended claims. It will also be understood that when reference herein is made to soap, the term is intended to include synthetic detergents in bar form and other equivalent compositions, the use of which is facilitated by shredding or flaking.

The casing of my dispenser is preferably formed of one of the many materials commonly referred to as plastics; thermoplastic or 'therrnosetting. resins capable of being readily molded, for instance, the phenolic condcnsation product known as Bakelite, are quite suitable. However, the instant invention is not primarly concerned with the material of which the casing is formed; less suitable material, such as light metal, may be employed if desired. To facilitate manufacture and assembly of the casing, and to render the interior of the casing readily accessible, it is made in separable parts comprising, in the preferred embodiment, a rear section 1, a lower front half section or cover 3, forming part of the cutter chamber, and an upper front section or removable door 37. Holes 2 in the rear of section 1- ,permit fastening the dispenser by screws or bolts to the face of a wall or other vertically extending supporting surface. The front sections 3 3'7 are provided with inwardly extending flanges 5 which interlock with the front edge of the peripheral wall of the rear case-section to relate and position the several sections properly, the lower cover section 3 being secured to the rear section by removable screws or bolts received .in apertures 4 in the cooperating sections.

The upperfi ont section-37 has nopermanent'eonnec tion :to the other sections of the casing, but is provided at its lower peripheral edge with a flange .35 engaging within the upper peripheral edge of the lower front section, and near its upper end with flanges 34 engaging within the peripheral portion of the rear section. A .spring latch 18 secured in the upper portion of the rear section and engageable with a downwardly extending projection 56 on the upper inside of the upper front section serves to retain the latter in position, the latch being releasable by a suitable tool to permit removal of the upper front section, as shown in Figures 1 and 2.

On the inner surface of the upper front section or door 37 is a vertically extending rib 8, which may have any convenient shape for reception in the V-shaped groove 10 of the soap bar 9, shown in Figure 8 of the drawing. The rib 8 may, for instance, be generally V-shaped as in the aforesaid patent to Voorhis 2,011,128, or may be shaped as shown herein and in the Voorhis Patent 2,191,003. In either event, section 37 is provided further, at least adjacent its lower end, with a V-shaped projection 7 dimensioned for reception in the groove 10 of the soap bar, and the lower section 3 of the casing may also be provided with a projection 6, also dimensioned to extend into the V-shaped groove in the soap bar.

The cutter, indicated generally at 19, is mounted on a shaft 20 which is received in cooperating recesses in the adjacent edges of the casing sections 1 and 3, whereby it may be readily removed on removal of the section 3,

and is provided with a crank 21, extending exteriorly of the casing, for effecting rotation of the cutter. Mounted in spaced axial relation on shaft 20 are a plurality of cutting elements. Each element may comprise a circular disc having a plurality of radial cuts in its periphery to provide separate cutting sectors, which are twisted as shown, so that the circumferential edges of sectors, which may be serrated or roughened, are disposed in planes angularly related to shaft 20. The form of the cutter may vary widely, and the instant invention is not concerned with the details thereof, excepting in combination with other elements of the dispenser.

The pressure feed mechanism for forcing the soap bar 9 downwardly against the cutter 19 may comprise a feed pan 11, provided in its front edge with a generally V- shaped notch 29 to enable it to clear projections 6 and 7, the pan being urged downwardly by a tension spring 15, having its upper end secured to the lower side of the pan 11 and its lower end anchored in a plate 16 which is seated in the lower part of the rear casing section 1. The pan 1.1 has a rearward. extension 14 to which is secured a finger hook 33 to facilitate lifting the pan against the tension of spring 15. A channel member 17, which may be formed integrally with hook 33, projects through an opening 44 in the rear of the casing and is provided exten'orly with cars 42, which engage the rear face of the casing. Guide lugs 12 extend upwardly at each side of the forward portion of the pan 11 and engage with the forward faces of ribs 13 of section 1 of the casing. t will thus be perceived that the pan is adequately supported for vertical sliding movement in the rear section of the casing and, when lifted by finger hook 33 to its upper position against the tension of spring 1.5, will permit the insertion beneath the same of a bar of soap. When the pan is released, it bears against the upper end of the soap bar, urging it downwardly against the cutter 19.

Projecting forwardly from the rear wall of the rear section 1 of the casing is a pair of vertically disposed guide ribs 39, substantially rectangular in horizontal section, and dimensioned for reception in correspondingly shaped grooves 23 in the rear face of the soap bar. As

hereinbefore described, the soap bar is guided in a straight path by the ribs 39 and canting of the soap bar with resulting loss of soap through improper feeding of the last fragment is avoided. Accurate and complete Preferably the ribs 39 are formed as shown in the drawings to provide shoulders 38 which are engaged by the rear face of the downwardly extending lug 28 on the rear end of pan extension 14 to provide, in conjunction with the ears 42, adequate guiding of the pan for vertical displacement, even in the absence of guide lugs '12.

It will be perceived, therefore, that the invention provides a means and method of feeding a rectangular soap bar in a predetermined linear path against a rotary cutter of the type illustrated, having its axis transverse to the direction in which the soap is fed, to the end that effective and economical use of substantially the entire soa bar may be achieved.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a dispenser for flaking and discharging a rectangular soap bar, the combination with a casing of generally rectangular horizontal section for receiving the soap bar, said casing having at its lower end a soap particle discharge opening, of a soap cutter 1n the lower portion of said casing above said opening, means supporting said cutter for rotation on a horizontal axis, and means in said casing for yieldably urging the soap bar downwardly against said cutter, said casing being provided at one side thereof with a pair of guide ribs disposed in laterally spaced relation in said casing, projecting inwardly of the casing in a direction transverse to the cutter axis, and having their lower terminal ends adjacent the cutter, said ribs being dimensioned for reception in spaced grooves formed in one face of and extending lengthwise of the soap bar and engaging in said grooves adjacent the cutter at either side of the proximate face of the bar, whereby the last remnant of the bar is supported against fracture prior to completion of shredding thereof, and a generally V-shaped element disposed at that side of the casing opposite said ribs for reception in a correspondingly shaped groove formed in the opposite face of and extending lengthwise of said soap bar,

said V-shaped element projecting into said bar to a substantially greater depth than said guide ribs.

2. In a dispenser for flaking and discharging a rectangular soap bar, the combination with a casing of generally rectangular horizontal section for receiving the soap bar, said casing having at its lower end a soap particle discharge opening, of a soap cutter in the lower portion of said casing above said opening, means supporting said cutter for rotation on a horizontal axis, and means in said casing for yieldably urging the soap bar downward- 1y against said cutter, said casing being provided at one s1de thereof with a pair of guide ribs disposed in laterally spaced relation in said casing, projecting inwardly of the casing in a-direction transverse to the cutter axis, and

ment disposed at that side of the casing opposite said ribs for reception in a correspondingly shaped groove formed in the opposite face of and extending lengthwise .of said soap bar, said element projecting into said bar to a substantially greater depth than said guide ribs.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 56,068 Lincoln July 3, 1866 40,825 Wilson June 11, 1895 2,191,003 Voorhis Feb. 20, 1940 2,441,034 Pumphrey May 4, 1948 2,613,713 Peebles Oct. 14, 1952 2,700,995 Ritter Feb. 1, 1955 

